Abstract
Metabolic modelling is a useful tool that enables the rational design of metabolic engineering experiments and the study of the unique capabilities of biotechnologically important microorganisms. The extreme abiotic conditions of the Atacama Desert have selected microbial diversity with exceptional characteristics that can be applied in the mining industry for bioleaching processes and for production of specialised metabolites with antimicrobial, antifungal, antiviral, antitumoral, among other activities. In this review we summarise the scientific data available of the use of metabolic modelling and flux analysis to improve the performance of Atacama Desert microorganisms in biotechnological applications.
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Acknowledgements
The authors want to thank the Basal Programme of the National Commission for Scientific and Technological Research (CONICYT, Chile) for funding the Centre for Biotechnology and Bioengineering (CeBiB, Project FB0001) and from the RCUK-CONICYT International Research Project Bioprospecting the Atacama Desert: the discovery and enhancement of novel therapeutic drugs from actinomycetes (Newton Fund JIC CA586). FM would like to thank CONICYT for National Doctoral Scholarship No. 21171090.
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Valeria Razmilic, Jean Franco Castro, and Francisca Marchant are Joint first authors.
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Razmilic, V., Castro, J.F., Marchant, F. et al. Metabolic modelling and flux analysis of microorganisms from the Atacama Desert used in biotechnological processes. Antonie van Leeuwenhoek 111, 1479–1491 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10482-018-1031-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10482-018-1031-y